<![CDATA[Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy: Factory Settings]]>https://www.phetasy.com/s/factory-settingshttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!NrQY!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F89da843c-d8fe-400c-9173-1f85a616efd7_339x339.pngBeyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy: Factory Settingshttps://www.phetasy.com/s/factory-settingsSubstackTue, 19 May 2026 08:57:36 GMT<![CDATA[Factory Settings - Discovering Your Higher Power]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-discovering-yourhttps://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-discovering-yourFri, 20 Feb 2026 18:01:24 GMT“Avoid talking about politics and religion” is such a boring cliche. It’s not helpful. Obviously, it’s prudent to know when to give in to that rule, because meaningless fighting is the real problem with a discussion about politics or religion. When it comes to politics and religion, differentiation should be the goal. In this episode of Factory Settings, Bridget and Jeren dive into religion, God, moderation, Catholicism, a Higher Power, and how to manage —all of the stuff, and more. We’re living through an era of infernal Discourse. This episode is an example of how to escape it.

QUESTIONS

Bridget

  • If you’re celebrating Lent, what are you giving up? And if you’re not celebrating Lent, or religion at all—whatever you need to access your higher self: What are some distractions in your life? What’s distracting you?

Jeren

  • What’s one thing in your life that you would better for, if you gave up? Is there something you’re doing that you shouldn’t be doing? Or if you did less of it, or gave it up, it would allow you to access some other part of yourself or achieve something—what would that be?

MENTIONED

“The Lord’s Prayer” from The Sermon On The Mount by Emmet Fox

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

“Bill’s Story” from The Big Book - Audio Version

Humbuggery Substack by Father Tom Miller

Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

]]><![CDATA[Factory Settings - Getting Real About Emotional Sobriety ]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-getting-real-abouthttps://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-getting-real-aboutFri, 13 Feb 2026 18:16:57 GMTBridget and Jeren discuss their diverging relationships with AA as they approach 13 and 9 years of sobriety, respectively, exploring what it means to feel “dry” (acting like a drunk without drinking) and how resentments, control issues, and the loss of spiritual connection can creep in during long-term recovery.

QUESTIONS

How does a normie kind of do this…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Factory Settings - Our Monkey Brains Weren’t Meant for the Epstein Files]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-our-monkey-brainshttps://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-our-monkey-brainsFri, 06 Feb 2026 18:02:54 GMTThe Epstein news cycle has captivated Bridget in a way that it hasn’t captivated Jeren. Why?

Why do we latch on to certain stories, but not others?

QUESTIONS

Where are you at with the Epstein Files?

If you are captivated by the Epstein Files, why? How did you get to that place? If you’re not interested: Why? What makes you go, “Don’t care”?

And, whatever you believe, why do you want to believe it?

What are you getting from the Epstein Files?

]]><![CDATA[Factory Settings - 20 Years of Phetasy]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/20-years-of-phetasyhttps://www.phetasy.com/p/20-years-of-phetasySun, 01 Feb 2026 18:01:06 GMTFactory Settings is back, baby! Cousin Maggie left on the 20th anniversary of Phetasy. Damn. So many funny moments in this episode. So many tender, thoughtful, insightful, electrifying moments. Jeren thinks the Dumpster Fire writers’ room is a support group. (It definitely is lol.)

Questions:

How do you honor endings of things?

Are there any beginnings you…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Get A "Real" Job]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-61https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-61Wed, 20 Aug 2025 20:30:36 GMTBridget & Jeren are back to discuss the difference between a 9 to 5 job and working freelance, or in the service industry. They discuss the various jobs they’ve had over the years, what was modeled for them by their parents, the weirdest jobs they’ve ever had, the concept of a “real” job and what that means to them, the benefits and challenges of workin…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Conspiracy Theories - All Roads Lead To 9/11]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-60https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-60Wed, 19 Mar 2025 19:01:00 GMTBridget & Jeren discuss conspiracy theories, the first ones they ever heard of, the oldest ones in existence, their favorite ones, and whether the collapse of faith in our institutions combined with so many COVID conspiracy theories that proved to be true, has primed people to accept other conspiracy theories more readily. They also discuss national pride, privilege, and reconciling truth in a suspicious age.

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Who Wants To Live Forever?]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-59https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-59Wed, 05 Feb 2025 19:01:08 GMTBridget & Jeren sit down to discuss Bryan Johnson and his quest for immortality, leading them to a conversation about life, death, Highlander, Tuck Everlasting, the mental fortitude required to actually be immortal and whether or not they’d choose to live forever if given the option.

Questions:

  • If you get to be immortal with 5 people, who are the five people you’d pick?

  • Would you want to live forever? What would the stipulations be?

Subscribe to Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy to submit questions, suggest topics and access all Factory Settings Bonus Episodes.

Subscribe to listen

Factory Settings is a podcast exploring politics, culture, relationships, mental health, addiction, and media, through the lens of how our built-in biases affect the way we consume information and form opinions.

Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Voting For Trump]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-58https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-58Fri, 22 Nov 2024 20:01:08 GMTBridget & Jeren discuss their decisions to vote for Trump, what they considered, and the reactions to the election.

Questions:

  • If you voted for Trump, how did you feel about it?

  • Are there people who wanted to vote for Trump and wish they did once they saw the results

  • If you had to have a game night, what 4 politicians out there would you want to hang out with and invite over to play in your game night

Subscribe to Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy to submit questions, suggest topics and access all Factory Settings Bonus Episodes.

Subscribe to listen

Factory Settings is a podcast exploring politics, culture, relationships, mental health, addiction, and media, through the lens of how our built-in biases affect the way we consume information and form opinions.

Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Jeren’s True Love: D&D]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-57https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-57Tue, 25 Jun 2024 21:04:53 GMTIn a hilarious return episode Jeren finally sits down and explains to Bridget how Dungeons & Dragons and other Role Playing Games work. Her endless questions include; Does sex come into the campaigns? What happens if I just walk up and stab the guy in the tavern? What does a Dungeon Master actually do? And so many more.

Questions:

Have you ever played a …

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Civil War and Cooking - Factory Settings 56]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-56https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-56Tue, 23 Apr 2024 17:01:30 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, have a fun catch up conversation about their lives lately, what they’ve been reading, what they’ve been watching, the general loss of our ability to focus, the different types of science fiction, and the form and function of art as a means of protest and in…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Did The Boob Tube Ruin Us? - Factory Settings 55]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-55https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-55Tue, 05 Mar 2024 22:01:10 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, discuss technology this week. They cover what it’s like to raise a young child in today’s technology environment, the rise of AI, the debate about screen time, the number of technological shifts that occurred during their lifetimes, which new technologies b…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[It's Impossible To Call Yourself Authentic - Factory Settings 54]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-authenticityhttps://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-authenticityTue, 30 Jan 2024 21:00:50 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, cover the topic of authenticity this week. They discuss what the word means to them, as well as its meaning historically and currently, and how the definition has changed, whether it’s a neutral term or a positive one, and whether the idea of living “authen…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[2023 Wrap Up - Factory Settings 53]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-53https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-53Tue, 12 Dec 2023 13:00:39 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, look back on 2023 and reflect on where they were at this point last year, the changes the year had in store for them, what they’re most proud of and what they’d do differently. They discuss the differences between intentions and resolutions, their move to T…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Early Sobriety - The Gauntlet of Hell - Factory Settings 52]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-52https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-52Tue, 28 Nov 2023 13:00:47 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, discuss the struggles of early sobriety. They cover what their individual rock bottoms were, and how different they looked, the lives they were leading at the time which finally led to the decision to get sober, why facing the wreckage of your life and past…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Optimism Peddlers - Factory Settings 51]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-51https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-51Tue, 14 Nov 2023 13:01:12 GMTThis episode will remain open to the public for 2 weeks and then go behind the paywall.

Bridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, decided to talk about optimism this week to bring a little more positivity into the world. They discuss whether being in the real world is a more optimistic place than be…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Does Discipline Equal Freedom? - Factory Settings 50]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-50https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-50Tue, 24 Oct 2023 12:01:15 GMTThis episode will remain open to the public for 2 weeks and then go behind the paywall.

Bridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, discuss discipline this week. They talk about their first exposure to the concept, what it looks like to them, whether they agree with the idea that discipline equals fre…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Do We Deserve Pets? - Factory Settings 49]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-49https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-49Tue, 10 Oct 2023 15:00:25 GMTThis episode will remain open to the public for 2 weeks and then go behind the paywall.

Bridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, discuss pets this week. They talk about the ups and downs of pet ownership, their first pets, having traumatic experiences with pets, and how their dog Hope changed both …

Read more

]]><![CDATA[The Gifts of Sobriety - Factory Settings 48]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-48https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-48Tue, 26 Sep 2023 12:01:14 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, talk about the gifts they’ve found in sobriety. They discuss how they feel about the phrase “this too shall pass,” the relationship between stoicism and some of the AA teachings, recognizing that sobriety wouldn’t just automatically solve your problems, the…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Self-Awareness vs. Self-Delusion - Factory Settings 47]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-47https://www.phetasy.com/p/factory-settings-47Tue, 12 Sep 2023 12:00:24 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist, discuss self-awareness this week. They debate whether self-awareness alone will help you change your subconscious patterns, bad habits and things that hold you back, the importance of building trust with yourself, humility vs. low self-esteem, overcoming fe…

Read more

]]><![CDATA[Trust Your Mistakes - Factory Settings 46]]>https://www.phetasy.com/p/late-bloomers-factory-settings-46https://www.phetasy.com/p/late-bloomers-factory-settings-46Tue, 29 Aug 2023 12:00:45 GMTBridget Phetasy and her co-host/husband Jeren Montgomery, a licensed marriage & family therapist sit down to discuss being late bloomers. They talk about giving up on themselves, failing young, and how living in such a youthful culture can make it feel like you missed the boat if you haven’t gotten your career together and found the love of your life by…

Read more

]]>